"Jill Stengl is one of the rare authors with the ability to transport the reader to another world--a delightfully rich world of scent and sight and sound.”
– Kim Vogel Sawyer, bestselling author of Echoes of Mercy
"In her latest novel, Mrs. Stengl creates a magnificent portrait of the early French Republic, weaving her delightful cast of characters both in amid the fray and out into the daily life of Paris. What a delight! I have not found a well-researched and compelling historical romance for many years, but this is a breath of fresh air to the genre The strength of the character relationships (brother-sister, father-daughter) gives an honesty and resonance to the realities of all kinds of love. Mrs. Stengl raises the historical romance to a new height in this fantastic tale!"
- Oywen, Reader of Many Books
Colette and her brother Pascoe are two sides of the same coin, dependent upon one another in the tumultuous world of the new Republic. Together they labor with other leaders of the sans-culottes to ensure freedom for all
the downtrodden men and women of France.
But then the popular uprisings turn bloody and the rhetoric proves false. Suddenly, Colette
finds herself at odds with Pascoe and struggling to unite her fractured family against the lure of violence. Charged with protecting an innocent young woman and desperately afraid of losing one of her beloved brothers, Colette doesn’t know where to turn or whom to trust as the bloodshed creeps ever closer to home.
Until that distant day when peace returns to France, can she find the strength to defend her loved ones . . . even from one another?
Dear Readers,
I am so excited to share this book and author with you! I was honored with the chance to ask Mrs. Stengl one question, and while I usually lead with something random ("If you were a marsupial, what would you be?"), or distracted ("What day is this? I wonder is my daughter is wearing matching socks..."), I thought long and hard about all the ways I adore this book, and you can read all about it below. But I wanted to say first:
Be sure to take the time to go here and take
advantage of the incredible discount being
offered by Rooglewood Press!
advantage of the incredible discount being
offered by Rooglewood Press!
A fantastic novel at a fantastic price? HUZZAH!
Now read all about it below!
Oywen
P.S. Would you like to win an autographed copy? (Of course!) And perhaps a cup of tea to go with it? Then remember to enter in the raffle at the bottom!
Jill Stengl
is the author of numerous romance novels including Inspirational Reader's Choice Award- and Carol Award-winning Faithful Traitor, and the bestselling novella, Fresh Highland Heir. She lives with her husband in the beautiful Northwoods of Wisconsin, where she enjoys
her three cats, teaching a high school English Lit. class, playing keyboard for her church family, and sipping coffee on the deck as she brainstorms for her next novel.
She blogs at Books, Cats, and Whimsy. Do stop by and follow her to keep up with all her writing!
Oywen: Your historical perspective is fantastic! Most French Revolution novels are centered on the execution of the King and the subsequent Reign of Terror, but your novel takes place at least eighteen months earlier. Is there a particular draw to this place and time in history for you as an author? Was this setting important to you (and your characters)? Why?
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I chose this particular time in the French Revolution, just as its triumph began to go seriously sour, because it was a turning point in the lives of my major characters. Most players on both sides of a revolution or war believe themselves to be in the right. Who would give up his life for a cause he believed to be evil? Doctor Hilliard, in particular, left his medical practice to become a politician largely because he sincerely believed in the Republic of France. Those early legislators intended to follow the example of the newly-birthed United States and establish a government "of the people, by the people, and for the people".
But something went seriously wrong, and what began as a noble venture ended in anarchy, chaos, and carnage. Yet many good and intelligent men clung vainly to the belief that a strong republic could and would emerge from regicide and rampant vengeance.
This is a story, not a history lesson - and yet I believe it is important for us today to observe, even through fiction, how unscrupulous journalists and politicians of the past vilified their political counterparts and used fear to arouse the common citizens of Paris to overthrow not only the king but also the original Republic itself. In the name of justice and equality, these men gained fleeting personal power, produced anarchy, and incidentally caused the deaths of thousands of the very people they had promised to protect. It is chilling yet ironic that most of these rabble-rousers later died at the hands of the rabble they had deliberately roused.
In such a battle, nobody wins.
I find it interesting that many French people today take pride in their revolution and believe it was successful - when in truth it was a resounding failure. Within a decade, after much bloodshed at home and on battlefields, they had exchanged a king for an emperor - and France endured a series of revolutions and counter-revolutions throughout the nineteenth century. How easily we can rewrite history to suit our desired ends!
This all sounds depressing, yet Until That Distant Day is about light in the darkness, peace amid chaos, and the hope that conquers despair. Life often makes no sense at all, yet God is near, and He is enough.
But something went seriously wrong, and what began as a noble venture ended in anarchy, chaos, and carnage. Yet many good and intelligent men clung vainly to the belief that a strong republic could and would emerge from regicide and rampant vengeance.
This is a story, not a history lesson - and yet I believe it is important for us today to observe, even through fiction, how unscrupulous journalists and politicians of the past vilified their political counterparts and used fear to arouse the common citizens of Paris to overthrow not only the king but also the original Republic itself. In the name of justice and equality, these men gained fleeting personal power, produced anarchy, and incidentally caused the deaths of thousands of the very people they had promised to protect. It is chilling yet ironic that most of these rabble-rousers later died at the hands of the rabble they had deliberately roused.
In such a battle, nobody wins.
I find it interesting that many French people today take pride in their revolution and believe it was successful - when in truth it was a resounding failure. Within a decade, after much bloodshed at home and on battlefields, they had exchanged a king for an emperor - and France endured a series of revolutions and counter-revolutions throughout the nineteenth century. How easily we can rewrite history to suit our desired ends!
This all sounds depressing, yet Until That Distant Day is about light in the darkness, peace amid chaos, and the hope that conquers despair. Life often makes no sense at all, yet God is near, and He is enough.
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Launch Tour Schedule
May 5
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Notes by Oywen
May 11
May 12
May 13 – Giveaway Winner Announced at
Tales of Goldstone Wood
Thank you, Oywen and Jill for a great question and very thoughtful answer. The beauty of your book and your characters are reflected in your answer.
ReplyDelete"You can't find a book long enough for a cup of tea big enough to suit me." --C.S. Lewis
ReplyDelete(Does it count if my comment is not original in any sense of the word?)
Thank you, Erin my dear, for joining my blog tour. Your praise for my book means a LOT!
ReplyDeleteBecky, you have no idea how much your lovely comments mean to me. :-)
Leah, your comment made me smile, so I think it counts!